Three Weeks
by Silver-Eyed-Elf
Summary: Audrey is a maid in Ariglyph Castle and still has scars from her last encounter with one Albel Nox years ago. When she is assigned to be his personal maid, sparks will fly. Yeah, summary's not that great, but the story is hopefully better than it sounds.
1. Apprehensions and Introductions

**Alright, so I haven't written anything in a long, long, _long_ time and posted it here. That's mainly because I didn't get much encouragement for my last story (but I managed to finish it nonetheless!), so for this one, I'd really love it if you all could post some reviews...? Please?**

* * *

"Audrey, Mika wants to see you. She didn't look happy." Gina smirked at me from the doorway. I certainly wasn't new to Ariglyph Castle, and I had learned the hard way that the woman who oversaw the maids deserved her vile reputation.

Gina giggled as she darted away, leaving the door open. I groaned and stumbled out of bed. Sleep is hard to come by in the Castle, and I had intended to spend my free day napping. Slamming the door, I began to dress myself for a regular day of work. I didn't want to keep Mika waiting any longer than I had already, so I hurried down to the kitchen.

"I'm _so_ sorry." Christine told me softly as I passed. I was tempted to stop and ask her why I was being summoned to see the Great Harpy herself, but Mika spotted me from inside her small office. Strangely enough, she didn't look displeased with me; I was immediately suspicious.

"Audrey, sit down." She told me in an overloud voice. I felt myself pale and I sat down with hesitation. Mika was in her late forties, with skin roughened and unevenly tanned by the sun. Rumour had it that she was an army nurse before her leg injury forced her to resign from her post there. Now she takes her frustration out on the maids of the Castle, and I seemed to be her favourite target. Something was definitely up, something _big._ I quickly recalled all of the pranks I had pulled within the last month; my behaviour had been strangely uncharacteristically decent, with the exception of that giant toad finding its way into Gina's stuff.

"I have a favour to ask of you." Mika said the words slowly, as though they tasted strange in her mouth. "I need a temporary replacement for a waiting maid." Waiting maids are assigned to each of the high-ranking nobles in the Castle. I frowned at Mika, and wondered why she was even giving me a choice in the matter; usually I had my orders barked at me as I walked past her in the the morning.

"Which noble?" I asked. Being a waiting maid could be a nice change for a while, but why was she asking me? Certainly there were other maids much better suited to the task, more docile and obedient.

Mika sighed and scowled once again, but I could tell that the irritation was not directed toward me, _this_ time. She tapped her oak cane impatiently on the cold slate floor before muttering "Albel Nox." Mika looked up at me, waiting for my reaction. I felt a cold dread sink into my stomach as if I had swallowed the very essence of winter. Albel Nox, or Albel the Wicked as he was better known, had a nasty reputation for violence toward his maids when they irritated him. And it doesn't take much to irritate Albel Nox.

I was momentarily dragged back to that dreadful morning, six years ago. I was just 15, and had begun working in the Castle as a maid a week earlier. I had heard stories about the fearsome 'Albel the Wicked', but I didn't believe them. The stories couldn't possibly be true; after all, I couldn't possibly imagine not having any emotion towards well...anything. And honestly, red eyes and two-tone hair? Come on, they had to be exaggerating when they spoke of him in her home village.

Albel the Wicked supposedly didn't feel emotion except anger. Any compassion or mercy that had once subsisted within him died with his father. Supposedly William Nox had died to save his son from the searing flames of an air dragon, jumping in front of the blaze just before it reached his son. Albel didn't escape unscathed; a silver gauntlet with claws in place of fingers was attached by miracle of Runeology to his shoulder.

I let my thoughts drift away from Albel Nox. There were better things to dwell on than a piece of nasty village gossip. I was carrying a large pot full of chicken broth to the kitchen. Because I wasn't paying attention to where I was going, I managed to slip on an icy patch on the path and slosh some of the broth onto the person walking past me. I cast my eyes downward, apologizing profusely and sick with dread that I was about to lose the job that I had worked so hard to get.

When there was no reply from the stranger, I lifted my gaze and saw a pair of cruelly glittering rubies and gasped. The stories had been true about Albel the Wicked. Calling me a maggot for my clumsiness, glared and casually sliced just below my throat with his silver gauntlet, leaving three deep and long wounds there. Those cuts had kept me in the infirmary for a week, and the healer persisted in asking me where I had acquired such gashes. Terrified of what would happen if I so much as dared to suggest that Albel the Wicked had left them there, I was silent until the healer released me. I have only told one person about the incident to this day.

I shook my head a little to clear the horrible memory from my mind. Mika was looking at me, and obviously hoped that I would agree to her request. I sighed and looked out the small window. "Why do you want me to do it?"

"You've got a healthy amount of experience in the Castle, and you're smart enough not to upset him. I know you can behave when you want to." Mika replied carefully. A thought struck me suddenly, and I look at Mika suspiciously.

"What happened to his last waiting maid?" I asked.

"...She's currently recovering from a throwing knife injury." Mika flinched slightly as she informed me of this. Most people would simply lie to me if only to make things simpler. Not Mika though; she had a rigid sense of duty and would never lie to anyone. I was about to refuse when she began to speak again. "Please Audrey. You're the only one who could possibly put up with him. It's just for three weeks, and I can promise you double your normal wages." Not even that was enough to get me to risk my life to wait on some violent snot noble, and Mika knew it. She sighed loudly and I could tell that she was about to offer me something that I couldn't refuse. "Triple wages _and_ Gina will take your scullery duty for the next two months."

Wow, triple wages and the chance to see Gina's perfect white-blonde hair stuck to her face with sweat after she had done _my_ scullery duty? Tempting...Mika knows me too well. I hesitated a moment before answering, fingering the three scars across my collarbones. Was it really worth it? I sighed and nodded. Mika smiled brightly, in a considerably better mood than I had ever seen before.

"Thank you Audrey. You'll start tomorrow." Mika told be in her usual brisk demeanour, hiding the relief evident on her face a moment ago. I sighed and scampered back to my rooms, eager to rest up a bit before tomorrow.

My eyes flicked open when I heard someone enter my small grey room. Of course, it's only Christine, and I relaxed.

"Already on your guard? Probably a good habit to get into." Christine said quietly.

"How did you know?"

"Mum knew the old waiting maid. I guess she interrupted his practice and he chucked one at her. Still don't know if he meant to hit her or not...I take it you accepted?" I nodded in response. "Well, be _careful_. Who knows what he'll do to you if you pull any pranks."

"Contrary to popular belief, Christine, I'm _not_ stupid. I'm also rather fond of my limbs and life." I roll my eyes. Like I'd try anything against him after our last encounter. But wait...what could possibly be more perfect? Finally I had the chance to repay him for these horrid marks, and have some fun while I'm at it.

"Wait a minute Audrey..." Christine was giving me her look that said 'tremendously stupid idea, Audrey'. As always, my thoughts had been perfectly displayed on my face for her to read. "He nearly killed you for spilling chicken soup on him!" Her voice had climbed to a dangerously high volume. The servant's quarters had notoriously thin walls; excellent for eavesdropping on others but when you wanted privacy yourself...not so great.

"Shut up! You know as well as I do that there are ways of making things seem like...accidents."

"_Audrey_." Christine hissed, still giving me the look.

"Come on! He wouldn't dare do anything to me, not when he's under such close scrutiny for his past slip up. Right?"

"Wrong." Christine finally sighed and I could tell that I had nearly worn her down. "You know what could happen, and I can't stop you. Just...don't get killed. I can only imagine what permanent scullery duty with Gina would be like." We grimaced in unison at the thought. I smiled reassuringly at Christine and slowly drifted off to sleep again.

I always woke up with the sun. Anything later is frowned upon in the castle, and I silently thanked the generous amount of sleep I had gotten the previous day for vanquishing any early morning grogginess. I got dressed and exited the room just as Christine awoke. All of my things had been moved up to Albel Nox's quarters except for the single uniform that I currently wore. Waiting maids lived in their noble's room with them.

The Castle was bustling with activity, even at this early hour. Meals were being prepared, runners sent into the city proper for ingredients the kitchen needed, and waiting maids carrying steaming dishes of delicious food to the nobles they served. I picked up the dish set aside for Albel without meeting the questioning gaze of some of the other girls and walked up the stairs to meet my doom. Curious to see what the Wicked One ate for breakfast, I lifted the silver lid of the tray. To my vast disappointment, there was no dragon bacon, no cockatrice eggs, and not a single exotic fruit. Instead, all that rested on Sir Nox's plate was a glass of orange juice, a few lean pieces of ham, and apple slices that had been spray with a touch of lemon juice to keep them from browning. Disappointing to say the least.

Once I reached the door, I hesitated before knocking. How was I supposed to introduce myself? I'm your new waiting maid since you almost killed your last one? Was it even proper etiquette to knock, or was I supposed to let myself in so that I didn't disturb him? Like Albel Nox could possibly become any more disturbed than he already was. My dilemma was solved a few moments later, when the door opened to display none other than Albel himself. I twitched violently when I met his eyes, almost spilling the orange juice, but thankfully the glass managed to stay upright. I quickly averted my eyes away from the glittering rubies that seemed to be piercing through my soul. Oh gods, what am I supposed to say now?

Albel grunted and glared at the tray of food I was holding. Suddenly, I felt very small and insignificant next to him, despite all of my awkward six feet in height. He snatched the tray from me and slammed the door, leaving me staring stupidly at the beautifully carved maple door. No one treats me like that, not even Mika on her worst day. Feeling a rush of blood to the head, I knew that I was about to do something incredibly stupid as I silently lifted a glass of water from the tray of a passing servant. No questions were asked of me except for a confused frown. I knocked briskly on the door, vowing this time not to let myself be spooked into submission by those cruel eyes again.

The door opened, and I had never received a colder stare in my life. I threw the contents of the glass into his face, aiming for his eyes. I was tempted to run, defiantly wasn't an option; I would have to be a coward to run from him again, and besides that, there's no way that I could possibly outrun him. Without a word he reached out and dragged me into his room using his powerful silver claw.

"You little maggot! This will not go unpunished." He took a threatening step toward me. I masked my terror, and stared back at him.

"Are you going to slice me up like you did your last waiting maid? I don't think that Mika will assign you another if anything happens to me." I told him, my voice full of confidence that I didn't possess. His eyes darted to the neckline of my uniform, and he took a meaningful look at the scars partially hidden there before replying.

"_You're_ the replacement? I didn't realize the Castle hired from brothels for waiting maids." He smirked as though he had just said something enormously clever. I kept my face carefully controlled and smiled back. "Where did those come from?" He asked as he motioned toward my scars. That bastard didn't even _remember_ what he did to me?

"Well, some of the customers at the _brothel_ like it rough." I mirrored his smirk and was rewarded when a flash of annoyance crossed his face. Obviously Albel wasn't used to having information withheld from him, especially by a waiting maid.

I heard his next movement before I felt it. A resounding smack filled the air around me and for a moment, I thought that he had sliced me with his blade. I could already feel the mark on my cheek reddening. I blinked sudden tears from my eyes quickly and kept my expression blank. "My servants do not speak to me as such." He raised his hand again, this time slower and I flinched instinctively.

I heard him laugh a few seconds later and I realized that he had no immediate plans to strike me again. Keeping my eyes down so that I didn't have to meet that poisonous gaze, I retreated silently into the small room allotted for waiting maids. At that moment, I hated myself; I hated my job and the Castle and I even hated Mika for begging me to take this assignment. But more than any of those things combined, I hated _him_.


	2. A Breakfast Incident

**Well, I had nothing to do today, so I decided I would give all my readers updates...even though I've only gotten two reviews. It would be nice if I could maybe get a few more since I've apparently got about 28 readers...? Just a suggestion. :-)**

**This chapter explores a bit more of Audrey's past near the end, tell me what you think!**

**Thanks Nobody and Tinkies for the reviews!**

* * *

My eyes opened and I looked around. An unusual silence filled the room and, for a moment, I was uncertain of my location. It all came back to me in a flash, the argument, the water, the strike. Mmm, that last part was still smarting even after a full night of sleep. I gingerly touched my cheek and walked over to the small cracked mirror in my wash area. I had received worse bruises, after all, Ariglyph was covered in winter most of the year, and for me, that meant an uncountable amount of tumbles onto the retched ice. This one however was far more painful than any blow the ice had ever delivered to me.

I groaned and attempted to cover the bruise with my long red hair. Much to my frustration, it didn't work. It was not going to be a good day. I heard someone outside stirring, and remembered that it was my responsibility to bring the arrogant little asswipe breakfast. Maybe I'll slip a little hemlock in it; not enough to kill him, just...put him in the infirmary for exactly three weeks. I was still smiling at the thought of it when I walked out of the room and down to the kitchen.

"Lover's quarrel?" Gina asked me in a condescending tone. I shot her the most poisonous look I could muster and snatched Albel's breakfast, as well as an apple for myself. One look at Gina was all it took for me to lose my appetite in the morning. As I was exiting the kitchen, I saw Christine rounding the corner. I wasn't really in the mood for a lecture on how dangerous it was to instigate Albel Nox, so I quickly hurried back. Instead, I bumped into someone much worse than Christine along the way. Brian Malachi was a Castle guard and had been for the past four years. He was extremely over-protective of Christine and, unfortunately, that extended to me as well.

"Hello Audrey. Are you taking breakfast up to...oh." Brian trailed off, looking suspiciously at my face. I tilted by head away the moment he started talking to me, but I must not have been able to hide the obvious bruise. "...Where's that from?" He narrowed his eyes, hoping to scare the truth out of me. But after what I had gone through last night, Brian's paltry attempt to intimidate didn't faze me.

"My fairy godmother came in last night and decided to make me the most graceful person in Ariglyph, so I decided to go dance on the ice." I replied, my voice oozing with sarcasm. He only scowled in response.

"Audrey, I know he didn't just up and hit you. All the favours he's had to call in to avoid getting punished for the last, _incident,_ will have mellowed him temporarily. Don't aggravate him."

"Oh, so now it's my fault?!" I can't believe him. All this time we've known each other, and he's taking that little toerag's side!

"Of course not, but try not to get yourself into more trouble. I'll try and keep an eye on him, but you know how nobles are. In the meantime, stay out of trouble." His eyes were full of...something for just a moment, the he turned and walked away from me without another word. I sighed and resumed my long trek up to Albel's room.

I heard a dull thud against the door when I reached my destination, and curious, I opened it a tad and peeked inside. Albel was throwing knives against a target stuck to the door. Great, just perfect. I'm going to end up just like what's-her-name without even finishing one whole day here. "Umm..." I opened the door a few centimetres more. "Can I come in?" I asked. I could only see a sliver of his face, but I knew he had a wide grin on his face. Anything that pleases Albel Nox in the morning wasn't going to be pleasing for anyone else. I gritted my teeth and pushed open the door, waiting for a sharp and fatal pain in the middle of my chest. Instead, Albel was smirking calmly at me, throwing knife in hand.

"Do you think you could get rid of that?" I smiled hopefully at him, praying this new tactic would work. By this time, nearly all thoughts of getting back at him were out of my head. Albel was far from stupid...despite appearances...and it just wasn't worth getting seriously injured over. At least, not while I was working for him.

"Does it make you nervous?" He narrowed his eyes while still smirking. Uh-oh. I swallowed and nodded after a moment. He walked toward a small table where the remaining knives were setting and bent down.

In a flash of pale flesh and steel, the blade came flying directly at me. I didn't even have time to move before the razor-sharp dagger was embedded in the wall next to me, pinning my servant's blouse to the wall. I let out a scream and dropped the silver platter carrying Albel's breakfast. The entire thing landed at my feet and splattered across the expensive tile.

"Shut up, fool. You have nothing to scream about; I didn't even hit you...this time." He casually walked forward and viciously wrenched the knife out of the wooden wall. "This time."

I hastily brought my breathing down to a normal level. After all, it would be very bad to hyperventilate and pass out in the middle of Albel Nox's room. He looked disdainfully at the mess by my feet before meeting my eyes again.

"I will require another breakfast." He said simply.

"What do you want me to do about it?" I narrowed by eyes in response to his own glare. "The kitchen doesn't just produce meals when you snap your fingers. And they only made you one breakfast." Albel looked thoughtfully for a moment. Wow, I was half afraid I was going to be struck again for that last comment.

"I want you to pick up Vox's breakfast instead. He doesn't have his retrieved until later in the morning, correct?" I stared stupidly at him. I couldn't believe what he was suggesting, steal another noble's food? Does he even comprehend the trouble that I could get in for that? I thought for a moment, and realized that yes, he probably did know. He just didn't care.

"Are you deaf? Go pick up my food, now." And with that, he walked into his bedroom and shut the door behind him. I glared vehemently at the door, but I knew it wouldn't do any good. I plodded back to the kitchen.

Once inside, I checked to make sure that no one was paying attention to me. Of course, everyone was still absorbed with the business of beginning to cook lunch. They weren't concerned with anything that I was up to, provided that I stayed out of the way. Keeping my head down, I quickly snatched the tray intended for Duke Vox and exited the kitchen before anyone could ask questions. So far so good. I bustled down the halls, eager to reach Albel's room and dispose of the evidence.

"You there. What are you doing with Lord Vox's food?" Uh-oh. I looked up, attempting to keep my face as innocent and expressionless as possible. It was a Castle guard, and even though my face was as carefully controlled as I could manage, he still looked at me suspiciously. Still, no need to fall to pieces; Castle guards were suspicious of _everyone._ Still, how had he known that I was stealing Vox's food? Oh, duh. Every tray of food carried the crest of the individual noble it was intended for. I was about to be escorted rather unceremoniously back to Mika if I didn't think fast.

"Uh, umm..." Come on, think Audrey. Something that the tinhead wouldn't know about. "The kitchen ran out of trays for all the nobles, so they sent me with this one. I didn't know it belonged to His Grace." I frowned and looked down at the tray, trying to imitate Gina's anxious expression. "Do you think I should take it back?" Chancing a look up at him, I could tell that he had bought my story.

"No. Just get to where you're supposed to be." He replied gruffly. Hooray! I walked back to Albel's room with a bit more confidence now that I had established a proper story.

I opened the door without knocking this time. "If you make me drop it this time I will _not_ steal another tray." I told him loudly after shutting the door. Albel poked his head out from his bedroom and glared at me.

"You will do whatever I tell you to do. That's your job, fool." I sighed impatiently but didn't reply. Sometimes it just wasn't worth it. "Come over here and serve me my food." He demanded.

I walked over to where he was seated and set the tray down on the table in front of him and lifted the lid off. Laid on the tray were two eggs and a piece of bacon that made a smiley face on the white platter. Albel sneered at the arrangement. "Why do they do this only for Vox?" He stabbed the smiley face in the eye with his silver fork.

"I have no idea, Lord Nox. You're such a charming fellow." I replied sarcastically. He glared at me and prodded the other yolk to make it spill its contents. My face fell slightly and I couldn't help but feel sorry for the smile; it looked as though it were crying yellow yolk on the plate. I looked away as Albel devoured it.

"What is this?" I glanced up and saw Albel holding a muffin while eyeing it disdainfully. He looked over at me, and I realized that it had actually been a question.

"Haven't you ever seen a _muffin_ before?" I couldn't believe that he was actually asking me this. How could someone grow up in the Castle and never have tried something as simple as a muffin?

"Of course I've seen a mufon before, wench." He rolled his eyes as I tried to contain myself. A _'mufon'_? Never heard that one before.

"Uhh...yeah. Do you want your _mufon_?" I smiled as he tossed it to me. Excellent, usually only the nobles got to eat these. I unwrapped it, and after my first bite, I could tell why they didn't want to share. It was absolutely divine combination of warmth, fluffiness, blueberries and raspberries. I made quick work of it with Albel staring at me the whole time. I ignored him and began to clean up the first breakfast. After a few moments, Albel left to discuss military stuff with the other generals.

Personally, I find the whole war to be pointless. We do need food and fertile soil to grow it in, but there are ways other than war to procure it. Gold and copper mines are abundant in Ariglyph, albeit monster infested ones, so why don't we just put them to good use? Of course, I am a little biased; my family came to Ariglyph after the war started. Father said that it wasn't hard to see who would eventually win the skirmish, and he didn't want his family living in Aquaria after the Glyphians were finished with it.

That was a long time ago though. All of my family was killed shortly after arriving in Ariglyph, but because I was only a year old when it happened, I was granted mercy. There was a sergeant in the Black Brigade whose wife couldn't conceive children, and I was adopted by him. Ironically, it is the very same Black Brigade that Albel Nox now commands. Very few people in Ariglyph actually know where I come from.

It's safer that way.


	3. The Chase is On

**Thanks to Gyoro and Ururun and Tinkies for reviewing! I really appreciate it :-)! I haven't really got anything else to put in this Author's Note, but you need to tell me if you want to see some AlbelxAudrey later on. Thanks for reading. Abbi/silver-eyed-elf. Oh, and i'm not sure when I'll be able to update again, things are gettin' a little crazy at work because of the _huge_ storm we had here last night. (I work for a place that fixes auto-glass.) Thanks again!**

* * *

My eyes opened and flitted about the room. I guessed that it was about two in the morning by looking outside at the moon, and began to climb back into bed. A loud thump resonated throughout the room and I looked toward my door in surprise. Sounds like that were a bad sign in servant's quarters, but for some insane reason, I felt safe within these rooms. I could only imagine how pissed Albel would be if someone was in the room now.

I rubbed my eyes and shook my head to clear the last traces of sleep from it. I heard another small noise, this one sounding more like a muffled voice, and decided to investigate. Silently opening my door, I paused a moment to allow my eyes to acclimate to the inky darkness surrounding me. The noise was definitely coming from Albel's bedroom. I gulped and hesitantly walked toward it, not really sure if I wanted to open the door.

I listened carefully before entering. I was not a fool, and I knew what young noblemen enjoyed doing with women in the middle of the night. But honestly, who in this Castle could stand Albel for longer than five minutes, let alone sleep with him? Still, I made sure that there wasn't any thing of _that_ nature happening in his room before I swung the door open soundlessly.

His face was in a terrible grimace, and I had never seen anyone writhe like that from a mere nightmare. He panted and muttered something, and I wondered how long he had been held captive in his dreams. The blankets had slid down, exposing his pale torso. It shone with cold sweat in the moonlight that drifted over him.

"...no. Father!" He cried, this time much louder. I feared he would attract the attention of the guards if he kept it up, and I wondered if I should wake him up or leave him to his nightmare. Tears were streaming down his face, and I sat down on the corner of his bed. It was possible for him to kill me now, even though he was disarmed. I glanced toward his katana sitting next to the bed. Even his prosthetic claw was unlatched from his arm, probably so that he didn't destroy the sheets while he slept. I looked at him again, and he writhed again, his hand brushing my leg in the process. I couldn't just leave him here to keep battling the demons in his sleep.

"Albel." He quieted a little at the sound of my voice, but his face still was locked in a grimace. I wondered if I was making a fatal mistake in waking him. I pushed the thought out of my head, but still hesitated. "...Albel." I said, as softly as I had before. I reached out and touched his cheek as I would have if it were only Christine having a nightmare instead of the man who had nearly ended my life; my own action had surprised me. His eyes opened in a flash of crimson, and they glittered with a childlike helplessness, mixed with fear. I withdrew my hand, expecting harsh words to follow.

I was shocked when he didn't yell at me, or even call me a pathetic fool for waking him. Instead, his breathing calmed and he drifted back sleep. He didn't even blink when he saw that I was seated on bed. It was too early to even begin to think about such things though, and I trudged back to my room to claim my bed once again.

Three and a half hours later, I got out of bed and dressed quickly. I wanted to stay out of Albel's way as much as possible today in case he decided he didn't like the fact that I had interrupted his nightmare. But that wasn't the only reason I had decided to avoid him.

I was angry with myself. After all, I had only accepted this job to try and repay him for the scars I was forced to live with for the rest of my life. And aside from the incident when I had met him, I hadn't done anything! Worse, I could feel that I was beginning to sympathize with him. I was raised in Ariglyph, and just about everyone here knows about how Glou Nox had thrown himself in front of dragon-fire to save his son. Albel was only seventeen, and something like that would have been scared into his memory.

And here I was doing it again. I sighed and glared down at my shoes as I pulled them on. I couldn't even get revenge properly. I walked out without looking at Albel to get his breakfast. Once I returned, I saw that he was throwing knives again, but this time he had moved the target. I set his tray down with a clank and left it to him to uncover as I walked back into my room.

"What's wrong with you today, wench?" He shouted from the main living area. I crack the current novel I was reading and sit down on my bed. My sudden frustration at myself and Albel made it difficult to concentrate on the words on the yellowed page.

"Those maggots in the kitchen gave me another _mufon._ I assume you want it?" I could feel the sneer even through the heavy oak door. That did it. I snapped my book shut and glared through the door. After the fool, wench, and maggot comments, not to mention the fact that he didn't even remember that he had left me scarred for life forced me off my small bed and to fling open the door.

Albel took no notice of my foul mood, instead choosing to concentrate fully on scarfing up every last bite on his plate. I reached down and snatched the muffin off of his plate, causing him to glare up at me. I coldly smiled at him and his scowl faded a bit, replaced instead by carefully masked curiosity.

"First, this is not a _mufon_. It's called a _muffin, _you idiot." I calmly pulled the wrapper off the muffin and took a bite, savouring what could quite possibly be my last taste of anything on this world. Albel looked as though he were about to jump up and snap my neck with that cruelly glittering gauntlet. I decided to press on, ignoring these obvious warning signals. "Secondly, people slave in a hot kitchen every day to make you those meals, don't call them maggots." I informed him after swallowing. I put the muffin back on his plate after saying this, but kept the wrapper in my hand. With the other I picked up his glass of orange juice and took a sip, meditatively swirling it around in the crystal decanter.

"Finally, my name is _Audrey_. Not fool, and especially not _wench._ I threw the muffin wrapper in his face. He immediately rose and reached to grab me, but I threw the orange juice in his face before those claws could grasp my blouse. As I ran out the door, I realized that I was probably about to die for what I had just done. But, I'll die knowing I've gotten revenge. I don't think that anyone's ever treated him like that in his life, and maybe he'll finally shrink his pointy-haired head down to size. I raced down the corridors, shoving anyone who got in my way aside. It was good that I was better at weaving through crowds than he was though, or else I have been dead a long time ago. The Captain of the Black Brigade was definitely faster than me, but he didn't have to navigate the kitchen corridors every morning to serve food.

I could almost feel his rage as he got steadily closer to me. A few guards had purposefully gotten in my way, thinking that I had stolen something or otherwise done something else that would warrant this kind of behaviour from Albel. I dashed into the kitchen just before he grabbed me. Christine yelped when she saw my pursuer, and I'm sure the look in those crimson eyes could have turned anyone to stone. She 'accidently' threw an egg on the ground after I darted by, causing Albel to skid along the tile floor and finally fall flat on his face with the nauseating sound of breaking bones. The kitchen grew silent, and I turned around and looked at Albel for the first time since our terrible race began.

His face had been drained of all colour, and he lay perfectly still. For a moment, I was worried that he had broken his neck in the fall and scuttled over to him. Apparently it took more than a chicken egg to kill Albel the Wicked though, and I felt his steel gauntlet wrap around my ankle. In a flash, I had fallen on top of him in a rather awkward position. Twin rubies were only mere centimetres from my own eyes, and I could feel his warm breath against my cheek. A natural intimacy for lovers, but the only thing that I could think about at that moment was the hand that was wrapped around my throat, a silent threat of what would happen if I tried to move.

"Can't you save that for when you're alone with him, Audrey?" Gina's light mocking tone cut through the din of servant's mutterings and whispers. Albel's eyes left mine, and I looked at Gina.

"Maggot-wench, you should learn to hold your tongue while you still have one." Albel replied coldly. I heard a dignified gasp and felt rather than saw Albel's smirk of satisfaction. Suddenly I heard a deadly hush spread throughout the kitchen and I knew that I was in for it. I felt a large hand reach down and pull me free of Albel and back onto my feet. I looked and saw Mika glaring at me. Uh-oh. But despite the ferocity of the gaze that was directed at me, it was nothing compared to what she gave to Albel.

"Lord Nox, why are you in my kitchen?" She asked him sharply. I would have been amused at the slightly intimidated look that came across Albel's face for a moment, but I was too worried about all the trouble that I was about to get into.

"You're fool threw orange juice in my face! I was going to punish her for her disobedience." He shot a poisonous look at me. Sheesh, couldn't we all just forget the death glares and put on our happy faces? No, apparently that wasn't going to happen.

"Do not speak to my maid as such."

"I'll talk to her any damn way I want to, wench! Don't order me around or you'll be out of a job!" Albel snarled.

"I've been here before you were born, _Wicked One._" Mika rolled her eyes as Albel shifted toward her and hissed in pain. "You make one more move against me and I'll give you something to gasp about. Audrey, get the stretcher. Beth, Uri, you'll have the honour of escorting Lord Nox to the infirmary." Beth and Uri looked absolutely terrified at the prospect of getting anywhere near the murderous Albel, and I couldn't blame them.

"Audrey, I'll see you in my office _now_." Damn, and just when I thought that I was going to get off the hook. Well, at least she wasn't going to slice my head off...I hope. I followed her glumly into the small room and sat down.

"He called me a wench and a fool. I had to do something! You expect me to just stand there and take that?" I protested in my defence when Mika sat down opposite me.

"Yes Audrey. I do." I was shocked by her reply. "In this castle, servants are worthless until they prove themselves. You don't get any special treatment." I only blinked in response. Mika sighed and looked down.

"Perhaps you don't remember Glou Nox...it was a long time ago. Today is the anniversary of his death, and his son always takes it fairly hard. Please, just try to treat him the way that you would want to be treated. Forget about those scars, there's nothing that you can do to him that will erase them." She sighed and met my gaze. "I realize that it's difficult, especially for such a woman as yourself. But you're clever when you're a mind to be. Put it to good use while you're doing this, and remember, it's only for three weeks." I swallowed the lump that had formed in my throat and nodded. She smiled at me and started to work on her paperwork again. Maybe Mika wasn't such a hard-ass after all...


	4. The Infirmary

**Author's Note is at the bottom of the chapter this time! By the way, this one has a bit of violence and angst near the end. Thanks Tinkie and Ayumi Warui for reviewing my last chapter, I'm not sure if I ever replied though...? Let me know!**

* * *

I decided that it might be a good idea to visit the infirmary, to see just how pissed off Albel was at me. I hoped that it wouldn't be too bad, but I did cause him at least one broken bone. I flinched at the thought of what it would be like to get yelled at in front of all the healers. I had the utmost respect for the Castle healers; they always radiated an aura of sunshine and calmness. I suppose I'm a little biased though, they did save my life. 

The woman running the infirmary looked up at my approach. "Umm...Is Lord Nox in here?" She smiled warmly and me and nodded, pointing to one of the beds in the back corner. I grimaced and walked to the bed that she indicated. I got the distinct feeling that this wasn't going to be fun at all.

I walked over and sat down on the corner of the bed. I didn't think that Albel would strangle me inside the infirmary, at least, I hoped not. Albel didn't twitch at this movement. "Hey, how do you feel?" I tried to be nice, and gave his unmoving figure a hopeful smile. His eyes had dull shine and I could tell that they had pumped him full of painkillers.

"How the hell do you think I feel, worm?"

"Just trying to be...nice." I told him quietly.

"Why?" Albel asked me. I looked up at him, surprised that he would ask me such a question.

"Because, that's, just what people do for each other. Usually." I added with a half smile. He remained silent and averted his eyes. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have lost my temper with you." I said this so quietly that I was secretly hoping that he hadn't heard. His eyes sparked when he looked at me, obviously full of curiosity.

"You're _pathetic_. After all the effort you put yourself through to injure me, you apologize for it? Spineless-maggot." He sneered at me and moved to reach for a glass of water on his bedside table, grimacing in pain from the effort.

With a patient sigh, I got up and handed the glass to him. "Do you want to eat your meals through a straw for the next two days? I can definitely have that arranged." He gave me a horrified look and groaned.

"Not as pathetic as I assumed." He murmured. I smiled and accepted the glass back from him, taking a sip before replacing it on the table. I was silently shocked to hear these words from Albel Nox, but I masked this carefully. This was probably the closest thing that I would get to a compliment from him, and I wasn't a mind to have it taken back so quickly.

"How did you get those scars?" He looked directly into my eyes when he asked me this, and the force of that gaze was overwhelming. I must have been staring, because he raised his eyebrows to show that he was getting rather impatient. The painkillers had definitely had an effect on his mind, after all, first a compliment and now he truly interested in how I had gotten hurt.

"...You. Exactly six years ago you clawed me with _that_" I motioned toward his gauntlet. He closed his eyes.

"You spilled chicken broth on me." His eyes flicked open and smiled at my astonishment. "I'm sorry..." He said, almost inaudibly. My jaw dropped. Yes, literally fell open at these words. Not much, but I was in shock. Luckily for me though, Albel was already drifting off to sleep. Whatever the hell they gave him, I wanted to slip it in his breakfast _every_ morning from now on. Finally I managed to speak again.

"Goodnight, Albel." I murmured. Yup, he was _definitely _getting those pills again. Hopefully for another three weeks.

He was definitely off the medication in the morning when I brought breakfast. I grimaced when I remembered that I would have to bring him lunch and dinner; he obviously couldn't attend the banquet as he usually did. I set the silver tray down next to the bed and looked at him reproachfully. His claw still had been taken from him, and I had heard from the nurses that he had been howling about it. He gave me a baleful look and ignored the food. I then noticed that his good arm was working at something on the other side of the bed. Narrowing my eyes suspiciously at him, I inconspicuously leaned closer to him, attempting to see what he was doing.

"Why are you getting closer to me?"Albel abruptly asked me. I realized suddenly that I had gotten a bit too close to him.

"Oh, just wondering if the sheets were clean." I lied with a smile. Albel rolled his eyes and kept watching me. I gazed out the window, wishing that I could be outside playing in the newly fallen Glyphian snow. Then out of the corner of my eye, I saw Albel start moving his arm again. My view was still obscured by the sheet though, and I couldn't imagine what he could possibly be doing.

Holding back a sigh of frustration, I whipped the sheet off his bed in a flash and narrowed my eyes at what I found. Albel was holding a small dagger in his good hand, and had been furiously working at destroying the side of the mattress that he was laying on. He had come very close to ruining the bed too; I'd give him another ten minutes before he had split the side of the bed wide open. "They won't move you to another bed. You'll have to lay in the mess that you make." I cut him off before he could open his mouth. "And no, I will _not_ clean it up." He glared furiously at me and the dagger was pressed against my throat.

"Oh honestly." I sighed in exasperation at this new development and rolled my eyes. Some of the healers were watching the incident nervously, wondering if they should intervene, but obviously too afraid to. He made a noise that was the cross of a growl and a hiss at my lack of fear. Truthfully, I was scared that he would actually do it this time, but I continued on. "Put that down. It's not allowed in the infirmary." The blade was pressed a bit harder into my throat, and I could feel the warm trickle of blood dripping down my neck. One of the healers started to come toward us then, to attempt to put a stop to Albel's behaviour, but I was quicker.

I jabbed three of my fingers directly into his broken and bruised ribs. The noise that he made was nearly sickening as he tried to gasp and scream at the same time. Albel's face was whiter than a corpse, and he was taking shallow breaths because of the pain. The dagger fell to the floor with a clank, and I picked it up calmly. The knife was made from a fusion of steel and silver and the handle was made of the same metal. I noticed that the blade was slightly jagged and further examination showed that the edge was set with lethally sharp diamonds. Gods, it must have cost a bloody fortune!

I decided to take advantage of his temporary handicap and I reached under the pillow. My fingertips met with the cool smoothness of leather, and I grabbed it. The knife's sheath was simple compared to the deadly beauty of the dagger, and it was obviously well made. I slid the knife into the leather and slid it into my waistband. I looked at him and sighed. His eyes were glazed over with pain, but there was still the same fire burning just under the surface.

Alright, so maybe I felt a little guilty about what I did to him. After all, I could have just backed away and let the guards deal with it, but I didn't. I waited until the healers had lost interest in our corner of the room and then pulled the privacy curtains around the small bed.

"What are you doing, wench?" He growled. He flinched for a spilt second before replacing the expression with a venomous glare. "Answer me. I'll have you thrown in the dungeons." He probably will too.

"I'll make you a deal." I leaned close to the bed and spoke in a voice barely above a whisper. I hoped that he wouldn't speak any louder either. "You wanna spend four more days here or not?"

"Of course I don't want to stay here, you fool! I have better things to do than lay in a bed with these maggots tending to me." He hissed. I smiled coldly.

"Then I want you to _swear_ that you won't tell anyone about this. Do we have a deal, Albel?" Oops. It's frowned upon to call nobles so informally, and by frowned upon; I mean docked pay or a night in the dungeon. Just another reason why I'm going to be in sooo much trouble after this whole thing is said and done.

"Fine." He said, narrowing his eyes in suspicion. Slowly, I pulled the sheet back to reveal his bandaged midsection. The healers had done a good job with the bindings, and I had difficulty getting them off. I could tell that it was painful for him when I jostled the bandage near his broken ribs, and put my hand on his shoulder, as if I could draw some of the pain out from this simple action. I held my finger to my lips and kept my other hand hidden while I concentrated energy into it. A red light shone from my palm, and I couldn't hide it anymore. Albel's eyes widened, and I could tell that he was about to shout for the guards. I clamped my hand over his mouth, muffling him while placing the hand containing the glowing red light over his ribs. His lips closed under my hand, and I saw him close his eyes with the expectation of more pain.

Bone knitted itself back together and his sinewy muscles rejoined where the broken bones had torn them. I concentrated, and pushed more blood to the injured area. This would help fight any infection that might have leaked in from the scrapes. Finally, new skin washed over the area, making it look like Albel had never had the unfortunate encounter.

I gritted my teeth and didn't look at him after I had finished, and I was terrified that he would call the guards despite his promise. I heard him inhale deeply and closed my eyes, bracing my self for the inevitable. I should have left him there, to suffer and writhe in misery, like I had to. I realized after a second that no shout was forthcoming, and opened my eyes.

He was just lying there, staring at me like I was some kind of freak from the carnival. I swallowed and wondered how long he was going to keep looking at me like that. I shifted uncomfortably, but he seemed to be unaware of it as he gazed. After what seemed to be an eternity of excruciating silence, he spoke.

"You're...not Glyphian." It wasn't a question. Of course, why would it be? No Glyphian man or woman had yet to grasp the delicate complexities of Runeology. The Aquarians said that all of the blood that had been spilled on their soil clouded the magic from concentrating in any amount that could be used. That was the nicer version of it though; most just said that Glyphians were too dense to learn the sacred art.

"No..." I said, almost inaudibly. When I looked up again, he had averted his eyes and was looking out the small dirty window.

"You disgust me. I ate food that you _touched._" He said, still not looking at me. "I let you touch _me_. Traitorous maggot, do you know how many you're people have killed? How many innocents slaughtered at the hands of those _Aquarian_ scum." He looked as though he were about to grow scales and spit fire at me. I could see the innocent snowfall reflected in his eyes that held so much concentrated hatred, it terrified me. I could feel my hands begin to shake with fear. My vision blurred, and I felt something wrenched from my waistband.

"Get. Out. Now." I had never heard a colder voice in my life. I lost my war against the tears and sobbed. I stood to leave, and felt a searing pain rip down my left arm. Looking down, I nearly passed out at the sight of so much blood. My blood.

I swallowed the bile that was rising in my throat and calmed my self, darting back from another knife swipe. Unfortunately, Albel had other ideas, and since he was newly healed, could carry them out. I felt three quick swipes of the blade across my cheek, and bit my tongue until it bled to keep from crying out. Whatever the cost, I would not give him the pleasure of hearing me scream.

As if he were reading my thoughts, a sneer lit across his thin lips. "You think you can resist me? A thousand men have wept before me, pleading for their pathetic lives. And you have the arrogance to believe that _you_ can stand here now?" Albel's sneer grew wider as some treasonous fear leaked into my eyes. I could tell that he experiencing sadistic ecstasy from slicing me up.

I inhaled deeply and gathered my last reserves of strength. I was losing a lot of blood from my arm injury, and would continue to do so until I could heal it. It was now or never. I dived at him, catching him off guard as we both toppled onto the infirmary bed. After slamming my fist against his kneecap, I lunged across him, shoving my elbow viciously into his throat while grabbing the knife away. His fist connected with my cheek though, and I dropped the elegant blade with a grunt. His good knee smashed into my stomach, further impairing my ability to fight back.

Bruised, bleeding, and most likely, with a broken cheek bone, I had completely lost the will to fight. Suddenly I was feeling all of those lacerations and other miscellaneous injuries that Albel had inflicted. Isn't strange how the sudden loss of adrenalin can do that to you? I was shocked that the healers hadn't at least peeked in on us, but we had barely made a sound, despite the severe injuries that were received. Albel's hand wrapped itself around my throat, but there was no way that I could possibly fight him again in my condition. The world was spinning around me, blurring the cold white floor with the plain grey brick of the walls. His nails dug into the tender skin of my neck, drawing a hiss of pain from me, but instead of strangling me, he merely threw me down onto the floor.

I concentrated on the simple task of keeping myself awake while he got slowly off the bed. My hand moved slightly, and brushed against a cold metal object. The knife! It slid effortlessly out of its sheath, and I gripped the handle of it with white knuckles. Albel stood over me, but I didn't look at him; maybe if I stay perfectly still, he wouldn't see me...nope, too late. He knelt down next to me, and I snapped my arm up and pointed the knife at his rapidly blurring nose, ignoring the searing pain that ignited my flesh. Blood oozed out of the wound and slithered down my arm, pooling at my shoulder.

I could feel the sneer on his face that resulted from my rather pathetic attempt to defend myself. The blade tip was shaking dangerously, and I was quickly losing feeling in my fingers. However, my worries about keeping the blade steady were soon extinguished though; I felt a quick and forceful jerk on the blade and Albel was suddenly in possession of the knife. Fuzzy spiders spun webs of darkness at the corners of my eyes that spread quickly across my vision. And then...nothing.

* * *

Albel sighed in irritation. Not only had the wench managed to land a few good blows on him, she had up and fainted as well. And he would be in trouble with that wretched old man Woltar again. Hmm. There had to be an easy way out of this. He would have preferred simply to leave the fool there to (hopefully) drown in a pool of her own blood, but it would be no mystery who had left her in such a condition in the first place. Not to mention, that would take a rather long time. Sighing with impatience, he tapped his foot. He wished for a moment that he could perform Runeology as well, but that thought was quickly chased from his mind. Runeology was an Aquarian art, and it was nothing that any decent Glyphian should ever even attempt. 

Fine then, time to browse through proper _Glyphian _manners of healing. A crimson glow lit his face for the second time that day though, and he looked down in surprise. The girl was healing herself, even though she was out cold! Now that was something that you didn't see...ever. But here she was, defying what seemed to be a rather basic law of Runeology, and healing herself. Albel grimaced; with all the maids in this gods-forsaken castle, he had to get stuck with the one that was not only a treasonous maggot, but a mage as well. Well, at least he wasn't going to get in trouble for whacking her around.

* * *

**Well, as I've said in the previous chapter, there might be some considerable space between new updates as I passed my driving test yesterday, so I'll be a bit busy! Anyway, what'd everybody think? This chapter was a bit difficult to write, as I'm not that great with violent/graphic descriptions. Oh and sorry all of you AlbelxAudrey people, not in this chapter. Keep your hopes up though! Please review!**


End file.
